Tissue engineering with the use of polymers

Abstract

Summary form only received. The author presents some results by obtained by collaborative work with medical people on tissue engineering using resorbable polymers such as polylactides and collagen. The tissues studied for regeneration include bones, skin, ligaments, and fibrous cartilage. The fixation of fractured bones in joints, jaw, and the face was performed using screws, pins, and mini-plates prepared from a high-strength poly(L-lactide). Regeneration of lost mandibula with the help of a poly(L-lactide) tray containing the patient's cancellous bone is currently undergoing clinical trials. A bilayered artificial skin was fabricated from a thin silicone sheet and a thick porous collagen sheet without glycosaminoglycans. The artificial skin functioned very effectively as the scaffold for the regeneration of the dermis tissue of full skin-deficient patients. The epidermis graft of patient origin was covered on the regenerated dermis to enable regeneration of the whole skin. Regeneration of broken anterior cruciate ligaments was attempted with the use of poly(L-lactide) fibers. The results with goats and sheep were as good as those of a non-resorbable ligament assist device. The periodontic ligament also could be regenerated with the use of a glycolide-lactide copolymer membrane.